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VISION Lexington 2020 Vision Report to the 2005 Town Meeting
April 4, 2005
The Lexington 2020 Vision Committee has completed a process of addressing three
topics that emerged from its prioritization of the goals of the 2020 visioning effort. In the
fall of 2003, the Committee co-sponsored with the Town Meeting Members Association
a series of community meetings, one in each precinct, to invite feedback on the goals.
Information collected at these meetings helped the Committee augment and narrow the
original set of 27 long-term goals to an updated and more manageable list of ten priority
goals. The three elected boards met jointly in December of that year and identified five
of the priority goals that seemed appropriate for follow-up through the 2020 Vision
process. The Committee established Task Forces for three of these topics to do the
creative work of analyzing these issues and recommending actions: Budget Process and
Communication, Constructive Community Discourse, and Economic Development.
The many volunteers who participated on these Task Forces did an extraordinary job in
tackling complex and difficult topics. The Economic Development Task Force identified
some key issues relating to lack of town policies for active recruitment of commercial
businesses and corporate offices, but did not agree to propose any concrete actions at this
time. The Budget Task Force and the Community Discourse Task Force suggested a
number of specific actions that deserve thoughtful consideration on improving how our
community works together. The full text of these reports can be found on the Town's
website at http://ci.lexington.ma.us/
Principal Task Force Recommendations.
Constructive Community Discourse
• Create structural mechanisms to improve the quantity, quality and availability of
information and interaction: priorities are to improve the Town's Website, and
create a Gathering Place
• Act to improve the quality of discourse: train Committee and Board chairs in how
to maintain civil discourse during meetings
Budget Process and Communication
• Create a Financial Policy Review Committee
• Revise budget development schedule to obtain earlier vote by Selectmen
• Implement comprehensive communications plan to disseminate budget
information within the community
• Establish a Metrics Review Committee
Economic Development
• Clarify for community the long-term benefits of economic development
• Engage key stakeholders in establishing goals for economic development
• Identify a town staff person to work on economic development
F
Next Steps. The 2020 Vision Committee is publicizing the Task Force reports in a
variety of media and seeks to engage the community in discussion of how to move their
recommendations forward. Concrete recommendations for action contained in the Task
Force reports will be moved forward by partnerships of Lexington residents, Town
employees, and community leaders working together. We are enthusiastic about the
results of the process and look forward to working with you to bring some of their ideas
to fruition.
We are grateful for the participation of many Lexington residents to date, and we will
continue efforts to broaden our outreach. Soon we will be seeking community input
regarding where to focus our attention next to strategically address long-range
community goals. For additional information on Lexington 2020 Vision visit the Town's
website at http://ci.lexington.ma.us/ or contact Candy McLaughlin at
cmclaugh@ci.lexington.ma.us
2020 Vision Committee Membership
The following list reflects both past and current members of the 2020 Vision Committee since the
beginning of the process in 1998. Current members are indicated with an asterisk (*).
John Bartenstein
Chuck Benson*
Todd Burger
Scott Burson*
Helen Cohen
Marian Cohen*
Clark Cowen
Robin DiGiammarino
Peter Enrich*
Ellie Epp
Sherry Gordon
Stacey Hamilton*
Tom Harden*
Bernard Harleston
Jamie Hoyte
Jeanne Krieger
Alan Lazarus
Peter Lee*
Paul Mammola
Fred Merrill
Richard Pagett*
Peggy Perry
Marjorie Platt
Fernando Quezada*
Ann Redmon*
Tony Siesfeld
Jerome Smith
Heather H. Sweeney
Nancy Tentindo*
Gerrie Weathers
Nancy Wilson